Walmart funds new van for medical school's homeless outreach project

Ray Griego, store manager for the downtown Honolulu Walmart scheduled to open in Summer 2014, joined Dr. Jill Omori, Associate Professor of Family Medicine and Community Health at the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM), and medical students in Kaka'ako to see the Hawaiʻi Homeless Outreach and Medical Education (H.O.M.E.) project in action.

A $51,813 grant from the Walmart Foundation’s Hawaiʻi State Giving Council funded the purchase of a new mobile health van. JABSOM faculty and students use the van to provide free medical clinics and outreach services weekly for the homeless in Kaka'ako, Honolulu, Waianae and Kalaeloa.

JABSOM Dean Jerris Hedges said, “We are very grateful to the Walmart Foundation for the H.O.M.E. project’s new mobile health van. This program is truly a win-win for our community.” Hedges continued, “Our unsheltered homeless receive much needed medical assistance while our faculty and medical students learn valuable skills in working with an under-served population.”